Bizarre Incidents
Thinking back on my life in South Korea, there was the humdrum of daily living along with surprises and the excitement that went with being part of new things happening and those challenges.
By Fr. Charles O'Rourke
November 1, 2016
Celebrating St. Columban’s 1400th Anniversary
St. Columban, a great Irish missionary monk, died in 615 A.D. in Bobbio, Italy. Columban missionaries (who have St. Columban as their patron) have worked in Fiji since 1952.
By Fr. Frank Hoare
November 1, 2016
The Detour
I just came from town for a visit with an Indian family and sat down on the very comfortable chair in the mission house.
By Liezl Noya Ladaran
November 1, 2016
Good News Abounds
It would be a disservice to truth for me not to acknowledge that there have been and are serious challenges for religious and civil society in China from sections of the State as well as the ever increasing lures of consumerism.
By Fr. Eamonn O'Brien
November 1, 2016
The Joy of Encountering God’s Presence
Since childhood I have been fascinated with geography. At times I would build different islands and mountains on the seashore and imagined myself at the top of them. It was a lifelong dream for me to travel from one place to another, but being in Peru was far beyond my imagination.
By Erl Dylan J. Tabaco
November 1, 2016
Columban Mission in the Atacama Desert
On a September morning in 2014, I arrived in Iquique in northern Chile on a flight from Santiago. I was coming to visit the Korean Associates who work with the Columbans in a parish in the new city of Alto Hospicio which has formed in the hills above Iquique.
By Fr. Donal O'Keefe
November 1, 2016
Called to Serve
That encounter inspired me to be more with the people with my true self. You don’t have to pretend because people would notice it. People would be grateful to you if you stay true to yourself by means of accepting your limitations and utilizing your gifts.
By Erl Dylan J. Tabaco
November 1, 2016
Zootopia
Ever since I returned to Korea, people have asked me, “How old are you?” “Why don’t you dye your gray hair?” whether I’m at the market or waiting at a bus station. And my response would be: “It has already been dyed by God, in a natural way, so why do I need to dye it?”
By Jung-Hae (Roberta) Kim
November 1, 2016
A Joyful Heart
Observing the Sacraments, particularly the Holy Eucharist, is something I look forward to celebrating. The joy comes in sharing the same space and time with people who like me desire nothing but encountering Christ.
By Fr. Kurt Pala
October 1, 2016
Crayons for Kids
My name is Louis Ybanez, and I am a Columban seminarian from the Philippines. As a part of my formation to be a missionary priest, I have been assigned for a two year hands-on experience to the Columban parish at the town of Matli, in the arid Sindh province in the south of Pakistan.
By Louis Ybanez
October 1, 2016
Kindness and Generosity
It is difficult for us in Myanmar (Burma) to get visas so we have to leave and go to Bangkok, Thailand, frequently to renew our visas. Bangkok is very highly developed with its high rise buildings, cars and buses crawling at a snail’s pace and sidewalks crowded with people. I find the easiest way to get around is on a motorbike taxi. They weave in and out between cars and buses, and when they get a clear view they put the boot down and speed off.
By Fr. Neil Magill
October 1, 2016
The “Hyun-jang” Eucharist
Each Monday at 7:00 p.m. in Seoul, Korea, believers come to celebrate the Eucharist in Kwang Hwa Mun Plaza in the center of Seoul. They come to the site where members of the families bereaved in Korea’s worst maritime accident continue their protest demanding justice.
By Fr. Donal O'Keefe
October 1, 2016
One in His Image
My pilgrimage in – indeed conversion to – interreligious dialogue started even before I learned the phrase interreligious dialogue.
By Beth Sabado
October 1, 2016Signs of Hope
Each one of us will have our own memories of the events that touched and made an impression on us this year. We have experienced the mass movement of refugees fleeing war, poverty and violence seeking a more secure environment which they would hope to call home.
By Fr. Pat Raleigh
October 1, 2016
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.